Summary:Sakura, a well established medical ninja in Konoha is faced with her biggest challenge yet: healing the eyes of a S-class criminal and ex-teammate, Sasuke Uchiha. Challenges are faced as the Akatsuki hunt down Sasuke, their intent to kill the one man that can defeat them…

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters or the anime. I only own this story :]

Chapter 1: Hate Binds to Darkness

A road less traveled by

"Critical wounds to the side of his abdomen. Puncture wound to his posterior humeral circumflex artery in the left arm; the shuriken has not yet been removed. His leg has two lacerations, one just above the knee and the other exposing his tendon. Dislocated right shoulder with a fair amount of blood loss. He's borderline dead ma'am."

Leaves one guessing for the future.

"Sakura-san, what's you're course of action?"

One wrong move, could mean the end

"Yuuki, 60 units of his blood type, get it here stat. Mia, attend to his lacerations. I'll work on the wound to the artery."

Of the perfect world you've created.

Emerald hues grew wide, her breath hitched in the back of her throat. She had prayed the man before her wasn't Naruto or one of her friends, only taking the time to be read their blood type and age. Her prayers were answered, yes, but in a cruel and twisted manner.

Sasuke, the man that had left her so long ago. The man that had disappeared and became a monster of himself, searching only for power. This man lay broken and dying in front of her.

Knowing she was the only thing standing in Death's way, she forced herself to walk forward. Her hair was tied into a messy bun, her sleeves rolled up as she washed her hands, ready to do whatever was necessary to save the man's life.

Eying his broken body, she swallowed the lump in her throat. Lifting up his arm, she inspected the wound, a shuriken lodged deep within his arm. Grabbing bandages, she wrapped his arms tightly on either side of the wound, stopping the blood flow from either side. Carefully she removed the sharp piece of medal from his arm, a large amount of blood following the action. Placing her palm on the wound, she pushed chakra to it, quickly healing the broken artery, followed by the skin that broke from pulling out the sharp object.

Looking towards her students, she watched as some fumbled with work supplies, their nervousness amplified as they knew who the man laying on the table was. Her eyes traveled to his scarred shoulder, noticing it's obvious dislocation. Knowing she would fix it last, she helped her students. As she began to pulse chakra into the laceration, a noise brought their attention to the large monitor on the side.

Flat line.

Sakura blinked, confused as to the straight line that suddenly appeared on the screen. Flustered, she moved her ear to his chest, noticing there was indeed no heart beat. Clasping her hands over his chest, she began giving chest compressions. The eyes of her companions were on her as they stopped what they were doing.

"Keep healing his wounds! Do the job I've given you damn it!" the pinkette yelled as she gave another chest compression. Nodding they quickly returned, their hearts racing with the thought of losing the man.

Her heart was in her throat. She hated losing patients. Her debt to society, the one she solemnly swore to herself, was to save those who were on the brink of death. To bring people back to the world and serve. This was her job, her career, and her calling. She couldn't just let him die. His critical condition caught her off guard, yes. She was impossibly careful with him, his fragile body before her and failing. This man had had a place in her heart. He is important to Naruto.

The thought of Naruto's devastated expression caused her to choke. They were best friends. They were rivals that had a brotherly love she could only dream of. She couldn't let him down. After all he's done for her, all he's done to make her happy, she couldn't fail him in such a way. She just couldn't.

A sudden light beep of the monitor caused Sakura to stop short in her compression, her eyes raising as another hopeful heartbeat showed on the screen. Looking down towards his matured handsome face, she couldn't help but smile. His face was peaceful and serene. She knew this would be one of the only times she would see him like this and, despite the circumstances, she couldn't be happier.

"Sakura-san, his lacerations are completely healed. Shall we bandage him up?" The girl Yuuki asked in a polite and soft tone. She nodded towards the female as she wiped the sweat from her brow, glad that it was finally over.

Staring at his body, she couldn't help but frown. His body was scarred, mostly on his pectorals and arms. He was indeed muscular, though lean around the waist line, as though he hadn't eaten in days. His ribs could be seen and his skin was a bit paler than usual, despite his tan. He looked malnourished and sickly.

Clicking her tongue on her pallet, the girl exited, her white lab coat moving with her body. Her ninja sandals hit the floor gently causing muted sounds as she walked down the hallway towards her office.

For Sasuke to suddenly appear in Konoha shocked her, to say the least. Tsunade had informed them that not only was he now an S-class criminal, but he was suspected of many other crimes, ones that would most definitely lead him to be killed. The Uchiha was in deep shit. There was no doubting that.

Reaching her office, Sakura removed her lab coat and set it over a spare chair as she sat in her own black leather one. She sighed, her hand covering her face as she tried to release some of the built up stress from almost losing Sasuke.

She had almost lost Sasuke. He had died at her hands, and she had brought him back.

Damn.

A knock brought her from her thoughts as she sat upright, shaking away the tired look from her eyes.

"Come in." Came her voice, looking down at a thin stack of papers she had yet to finish before she left.

"Sakura-chan! You'll never believe it!" The familiar voice caused Sakura to cringe, her eyes looking up and settling on a smiling blonde man. His shining sapphire eyes caused her to smile softly as he approached her desk. He was clad in his Jounin uniform, a simple short black sleeved shirt and black ninja pants with his forest green vest. He pulled off the look, she would admit. He had grown to be fit and a presentable being, to say the least.

"What is it, Naruto?" She asked, trying to make her voice sound light and carefree like she usually did around him. Putting his hand on her desk, he motioned towards the door, his eagerness evident.

"I got Sasuke! I found him!" Sakura blinked, taking in his words.

Naruto found Sasuke? He brought him back?

"You did? How?" She was a bit skeptical. Had Naruto done that?

She couldn't believe that…

The man didn't even bother sitting down, his enthusiasm overwhelming him as he fidgeted before her. He was always like this. Overly happy and excited about everything. He was always the joyful vibe in Team 7. Whether he was fighting with Sasuke or complaining, he always managed to keep that reassuring smile on his face. He's always been determined. She looked up to him in many ways, despite his failure in their genin days. He was far from being a genius, his brute strength better than his wit, but he held a quality she and Sasuke lacked.

Passion.

Passionate about his dream. About his life. He was the only one of them that strived for greater things not only for himself but for others. If only he knew how many people respected him. He truly is unique.

"He was almost half dead when I found him! I didn't see anyone around so I brought him back here!" Sakura nodded towards him as she stood from her spot, jade eyes settling on his sapphire ones. He shot her a curious glance but she shook it off.

"Come on, let's visit him." She stated, smiling. Nodding in agreement, the male hurried her from the room, his antics rushed and happy. His smile never faded, unlike her own.

"Here we are." Sakura opened the door to the room, allowing Naruto to walk in first. The room was bare, the only sound coming from a monitor present on the left of Sasuke. His heartbeat was slow and steady, his eyes shut as the visible movement of his chest rising and falling could be seen from their spot at the door.

Standing over him, Naruto inspected his face and blanketed body. His friend from so long ago. His rival. He looked weak and unstable, like he hadn't taken care of himself in his time away from Konoha. His eyes fell on his face, cold and stoic even in this relaxed state. To Naruto, he looked miserable. Frowning, he turned to his pink haired teammate.

"What happened to him?" Sakura looked up from the chart in her hand, skimming it with her eyes once more.

"It says here he had several deep wounds, a punctured artery, and a dislocated shoulder." She indicated. Flipping the page to it's normal spot on the clipboard, the girl placed it on a table near the bed.

Naruto moved his eyes away from her as he folded his arms over his chest. Eying him, the girl knew he was thinking. Thinking of all the things he could have possibly done to fix this. To protect Sasuke from this kind of damage. She knew him well enough to predict that much. His face was troubled, his forehead adorned with a few wrinkles as his face scrunched in thought. Sighing, she placed a hand on his shoulder, squeezing it gently.

"He's going to be fine. You did all you could." She tried to assure him.

In the back of her mind, she knew this was only the beginning.

Sasuke still is a missing-nin. He is wanted by several nations and villages, all looking for his prized head as proof. When he is fully healed, he will be questioned and most likely killed. The word sounded sour on her tongue.

Killing was a normal thing for shinobi. In fact, in most cases, it was a required skill learned by people as young as teenagers. She had killed before, and would keep killing as told to. There is evil in the world that needs to be eliminated. Destroyed. By people that kill and hunt for a living. Power and greed. Everything is considered a factor.

"I know. I just can't help but feel strange about all of it. I mean, I'm happy he's back. I just feel like no one else will be." His words trailed off as he gave a sigh of defeat. She frowned slightly, knowing he was thinking the same as she. Their friend is not innocent. He killed innocent people. He plotted against Konoha. He's a threat.

Her grip loosened on his shoulder as she too looked at the still frame of the Uchiha. His eyes were shut and he looked dead, though the monitor said otherwise. How could someone succumb themselves into so much darkness? How could someone want that? She would never understand. She was never able to understand them. Naruto and Sasuke were in a class far from her own. She always knew that sickening fact. The one that made her feel so useless, so weak.

"Moron."

Her heart stopped.

"Teme?"

Sasuke's eyes opened, the same black hues that she had remembered from so long ago, stared back. His gaze was on the ceiling as Naruto addressed him. He refused to make eye contact.

"I can't believe you're alive Sasuke! What the hell happened to you?" Naruto yelled at the man, ready to grab his collar and shake him. Sakura put her hand out in front of him, stopping him in his tracks. Taking a small flash light from a drawer, she waved it in front of Sasuke.

No reaction.

"Naruto…" Sakura stood in disbelief, her gaze holding confusion as she whispered his name. Naruto gave her a worried look as he was addressed.

"He's blind."